FEB.25, 2018 OUR GROUP 23 OF MORNING HOTSHOTS

“Though there is no way of proving it, we believe that early in our drinking careers most of us could have stopped drinking. But the difficulty is that few alcoholics have enough desire to stop while there is yet time.”

2001 AAWS, Inc.

Fourth Edition; Alcoholics Anonymous, pg. 33

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VERNON HOWARD

“There’s lots of life in a television set, right? Color, action,

drama! Oh, what a variety of shows are on your television set. The

set is alive, isn’t it? What kind of life? Mechanical, electrical

movement. We’ll just call it plain old action. What if that tele-

vision set thought that it had created itself — just as mechanical

human beings do. Aren’t you a television set? Turn off the whole

program! (Laughter) You’ve got reruns — the boring reruns! (Laughter)

How many of you sit in front of a television set in a dull stupor?

(Laughter) How many of you know what a dull stupor is? (Laughter)

A dull stupor is done by dull stupids! (Laughter)

What if the set thought that it had to keep itself going? ‘What if

my source of electricity is cut off?’ the set said, worried! (Laughter)

‘Oh! People are watching me! I’d better put on a pretty good show!’

(Laughter) Ah, got you there! (Laughter)”

Your Power of Natural Knowing, p. 58

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The Serenity Prayer

God grant me the serenity to

Accept the things I cannot change;

Courage to change the things I can;

And the Wisdom to know the difference.

We were now at Step Three. Many of us said to our Maker, as we understood Him:

“God, I offer myself to Thee – to build with me and to do with me as Thou wilt. Relieve me of the

bondage of self, that I may better do Thy will. Take away my difficulties, that victory over them

may bear witness to those I would help of Thy Power, Thy Love, and Thy Way of life. May I do Thy

will always!”

We thought well before taking this step making sure we were ready; that we could at last abandon

ourselves utterly to Him.

Seventh Step Prayer

-The Seventh Step Prayer is from page 76. The Big Book

When ready, we say something like this:

“My Creator, I am now willing that you should have all of me, good and bad. I pray that you now

remove from me every single defect of character which stands in the way of my usefulness to you

and my fellows. Grant me strength, as I go out from here, to do your bidding. Amen.”

We have then completed Step Seven.

-(Both derived from page 86 in the Big Book)

St Francis Prayer

-From Chapter 11 of “Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions”

“Lord, make me a channel of they peace,

that where there is hatred, I may bring love;

that where there is wrong, I may bring the spirit of forgiveness;

that where there is discord, I may bring harmony

that where there is error, I may bring truth;

that where there is doubt, I may bring faith;

that where there is despair, I may bring hope;

that where there are shadows, I may bring light;

that where there is sadness, I may bring joy.

Lord, grant that I may seek rather to comfort than to be comforted;

to understand, than to be understood;

to love, than to be loved.

For it is by self-forgetting that one finds.

It is by forgiving that one is forgiven.

It is by dying that one awakens to Eternal Life.”

St. Francis Assisi (1182-1228).

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Today I do affirm that I am Divinely guided…There is that within which knows what to do and how to do it, and it compels me to act on what it knows.

Ernest Holmes

It works if you believe in God,

but you can’t play God.

Anonymous

We are each other’s harvest; we are each other’s business;

we are each other’s magnitude and bond.

GWENDOLYN BROOKS

If we look to the lamp rather than the light, we will see duality and difference. But if we look at the light itself, it remains unchanged, no matter what colour the lamp.

Mind of the universe! Point of view

makes all the difference we see between

believing Muslim, Zoroast, and Jew

Masnavi 3: 1251-58

RUMI

ACIM Workbook Lesson 55 Insights

Review of Lessons 21-25

I still must be believing in separation because I still see separate bodies. This tells me that I do not perceive my own best interests and that I do not know what anything is for. Thank goodness there is a Guide in my mind That will help me out of this insanity. I need this Guide to lead me out of insanity and guide toward true meaning. All the ego’s fearful thoughts mean nothing.

There is only one way to return Home and that is to be willing to let go of thinking in terms of individuality. I do this with the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit shows me that the dream is over. All are healed in the eternal now. Love’s Presence is all there is to see and feel and know in the eternal now. As I am willing to see things differently, I will see things differently. This is true about myself and everyone.

Thank goodness all these dreams of separation are not real and mean nothing. No one has really left the Mind of God and everyone is safe at Home in Heaven now. As I am led to remember this, the peace of God gently surrounds me and enfolds me in its loving embrace. All is very well. “Nothing real can be threatened. Nothing unreal exists. Herein lies the peace of God.” (Intro.)

One of the main themes in this review is that everything I think I see is a projection of my own thoughts. And everything I see is a picture of individuality that opposes the Thoughts of God, so my thoughts must be attack thoughts. The world I see could not have been created by a loving God for His beloved Son. There is great hope in this review because what I see is the projection of my own thoughts and I can change my thoughts. I have the power to change what I see.

I cannot do this on my own, but God has given me a Guide to lead me out of the quagmire of insane thinking. Since this Guide was given by God, It is guaranteed to work. This Guide comes with an eternal guarantee from the Eternal. My only job is to allow myself to be led. This Guide will lead me back Home to the Heaven of God’s peace. This is my heart’s desire. This is what I want above all else, despite the seeming conflict in my mind between goals that seem to represent different interests.

This conflict in my mind simply demonstrates the need to let God’s Voice guide me and to resign as my own adviser. As I turn over all my problems, my questions, my uncertainty to that inner Guide, I become more and more peaceful. No longer do I have to effort and strain to figure out how to be happy and what might make me happy. I do not know. But the Guide given me by God knows truly what will give me perfect happiness that lasts forever. I am willing to step back and let Him lead the way. I accept His help with relief and great gratitude.

All that I see comes from inside myself. I can see Love no matter what is present because Love is present. Love is present because Love is me. I am Love. I can be Love and loving no matter what the place or condition or time or person. These are not limitations on Love. There are no limitations on Love. There are no limitations on Me, my Self.

The ego sees limitations everywhere. The ego feeds on boundaries and crossed boundaries, these artificial lines drawn in the sand that make up our human lives and relationships. They shift with the winds like desert dunes, once here, then there. What do they mean but shifting demarcations, almost indistinguishable from one another except for their impermanence, their ceaseless change.

What then is my Life, the one I desire to see, the one of ceaseless joy? This is the Life I choose to realize. I do not know how to manifest this Life, for this is not of ego. I give to Holy Spirit the burden of sorting out the false from the true in my life. This burdens me for I don’t know my best interest and would worry what it is.

This is no burden for Holy Spirit. This is Holy Spirit’s joy. I rest in the peace that Holy Spirit has everything in order, sees that the Divine Plan is at work in my Life. I trust in this. I would follow where this leads. I am thankful that I feel peaceful and joyful in this moment.
Today I follow peace and joy. Today I follow what I Am to where I ought to go.